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What’s a chicken foot good for anyway?

Our assignment today is to write about our favorite meal and or the people that we enjoyed it with.

The reason I am a “tad” overweight is because I really do like food. I think I always used food to celebrate life. Whenever something good was happening it was always surrounded by food. I am working on the theory…that I have to start eating to live, rather than living to eat!
My family and I were totally blessed, because as a kid, we always had food. When I think of those days, one in particular stands out.

My Dad and I went out to the chicken yard and caught some chickens. We always grabbed the roosters because the hens were for egg-laying. The roosters…well they were only good for keeping the hens happy, and baby chicks which we never raised from eggs, just bought them and they came in boxes filled with yellow fluff. When we went to the Post Office to pick them up, you could hear their little “cheap, cheep, cheep,” calls. It was fun to get new chicks every year…They were one of our very best meals, once they grew enough to be tasty and had some meat on them.

But, getting back to my story….My folks had invited the whole family to come for a Sunday Picnic. So that morning Dad and I went about getting those roosters. First we had to catch them because they ran loose on our farm. Dad had a long stick which had a hook on the end of it. He would sneak up to the chicken and slide the hook over a leg….and basically bring him in. When we had several birds, enough to feed everyone, he grabbed his trusty axe and proceeded to cut their heads off. Then he would throw them out into the yard where they would jump around as they died. The jumping was the last jumping they would ever do, but it got all the blood out of them. Once they stopped jumping, we gathered them up, and headed to the house.

At the house, Mom had a big kettle of water boiling….That went into a pail, and was taken to the yard, where we dipped the chickens in it. When they had been thoroughly heated and dunked…the feathers would come off easily…and one of the neatest things about this, is that even though those chickens walked in chicken poo and other yuck in the yard, and had the dirtiest feet ever, once you dunked those feet in the water, the skin including the toenail would all come off and there you had the cleanest prettiest little chicken feet you could imagine…at least in my “farm kids” heart.

Well, once that was done it was time to cut them up and get the innards out. Then wash them well in very clean and ice cold water.

At this point they went to my Mother, who was a champion Chicken cooker! She could make the best fried chicken in the entire world.

Well, this day company was coming, and Mom got out her old cast-iron chicken frying skillet which had years of baked on black, and very high sides. Because the chickens were “really” fresh they had lots of moisture in the meat. What that meant is that Mom always ended up getting burned by the hot grease that popped out of the skillet when she was frying them.

Getting back to my favorite though…On this particular Sunday, we had been up very early, and Dad and I were starving…but Mom wouldn’t allow us to eat any of the chicken she was frying, because it was for company.

This day, we begged for chicken…so against her best wishes, but with Dad and i harrassing her, she agreed to put in the chicken feet for us to snack on before people got there and it was time for the picnic.

She never liked to cook the chicken feet with the toenails on, because she always thought one of us kids would accidentally choke on one of those toenails…but I suppose she was in a rush and just wanted to get us out of her hair.

She fried them up and gave them to Dad and I to eat…OH MY GOSH…There was nothing that ever tasted as good as those Chicken Feet…We did have to eat them quickly because she wanted those chicken feet in the trash before any guests showed up! After all, What would people think if they saw us eating chicken feet, especially with the toenails on.

Dad and I gobbled up the delicacy…got rid of the feet and welcomed our guests within minutes of enjoying them.

I don’t remember how wonderful the actual fried Chicken was that day…but I do remember that the Chicken feet were AWESOME! And to top it off…nobody choked on the toenails!

Thank you for this story! I loved the details. My little brothers would watch grandma and grandpa’s neighbors butcher their chickens and watch them run around with their heads cut off then run back to grandma’s and tell me all about it. I thought, “Yuk!”
I never knew chicken feet were edible! I’ve read about chicken feet being used in Louisiana voodoo mysteries, but that’s about it.

Thank you for your comments…they made me chuckle…Yes, chicken feet are edible…just not much meat on them! And as for the Louisiana voodoo mysteries…nope..never did that! Thanks again for your comments!